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Wednesday, February 09, 2005

Angel Stomp Future Review

Written by Warren Ellis; Art by Juan Jose Ryp
Apparat line from Avatar Press: $3.50

Here we are at the end of the Apparat Line. Angel Stomp Future is an exploration in science fiction. Dr. Angel Antimony, at the start of the story, is an old-fashioned doctor who doesn't believe in plastic surgery. The future has gotten out of control and people now get all sorts of animal implants in their body. Some people will add on anything from gorilla noses to octopus feet.

Story wise, this book replaces Simon Spector as my least favorite book of the Apparat line. While the future that Ellis presents in intriguing, the story itself was lacking. One could see how society could degenerate into how it is portrayed in the book. What was hard to believe, however, was the attitude of Angel herself. She definitely has a chip on her shoulder, but no one tells us why. The character and her outfits and piercings distracted me from the story and the setting. The setting, this future world, was what I was actually interested in.

My main complaint with the Apparat books is that the stories are too short. Although confining them to one issue was the point of the experiment, it made the books, especially Angel Stomp Future, suffer. This one needed at least six more pages to feel complete.

Ryp's art fits the story well. It is frenetic and crazy just like the world portrayed here. He fills every panel with garbage, smoke, or graffiti and makes the future seem sad and void of morality. His work is outstanding.

Angles Stomp Future was a disappointment to me, but the Apparat line was a great experiment. I wish more creators had the chance to do something like this.